The pain moved from the right upper abdomen to the right lower abdomen.
Now he was pressing between his right hip bone and navel.
Taesu’s expression grew increasingly peculiar.
"Let me listen with a stethoscope."
Swish.
Having set aside percussion, Taesu switched to auscultation.
Immediately, he used the stethoscope to listen to the abdominal sounds in the area he had indicated.
Gurgle, gurgle.
His bowels were not moving smoothly.
His stomach was no different.
Taesu looked up at An Hyeonguk and asked.
"When did you last eat?"
"At lunch. I didn’t have an appetite at dinner, so I only pretended to eat."
"Did you vomit at all?"
"No. But I was shivering too, so I thought I had indigestion."
An Hyeonguk answered promptly.
Thanks to that, Taesu gradually became more certain.
Setting aside Old Man An’s reaction and looking only at An Hyeonguk, things seemed to become a bit clearer.
So finally, he pressed the painful spot with his fingertips.
Press.
It was simultaneous with Taesu’s action.
An Hyeonguk opened his mouth wide and let out a scream.
"Urk, kaaaah."
"Hmm."
"Y-you, you little... Ughhh."
An Hyeonguk glared at him in annoyance.
It was enough to make anyone angry if their sore spot was pressed like that.
However, Taesu didn’t look particularly sorry.
"I know what it is."
"Wh-what is the disease?"
"That’s..."
The moment Taesu was about to state the diagnosis.
Slam.
The clinic door burst open roughly, and Jeong Minsu came rushing in.
"Hah, hah. Ta-Taesu."
Perhaps because he had run all the way from Old Man An’s house, his breathing was extremely rough.
But his expression wasn’t good either.
At the sight, An Hyeonguk tried to react first.
"Mr. Jeong, Father..."
Press.
Taesu pressed firmly on An Hyeonguk’s shoulder to calm him down.
And he asked directly himself.
"Mr. Jeong, is there a problem?"
"Hah, hah. No, the elder fell asle—hah, hah. No, I put him to sleep with an injection for now."
"Then you could have come in slowly."
Taesu glanced at Jeong Minsu, who was creating a sharp atmosphere.
Kim Hyeokgwon was the same.
"We thought things had calmed down a bit; is it okay to make such a commotion?"
"I-I had no... hah, hah. choice."
"Goodness. Drink some water and catch your breath."
Kim Hyeokgwon, perhaps feeling sorry for him, showed him kindness.
Jeong Minsu gulped down the water he handed him at once.
He then exhaled a long breath.
Having regained some composure, he looked at Taesu.
"Phew. I’m okay."
"So what is it?"
"I heard from the village chief—apparently, Hyeonguk hyung-nim had an older sister."
At those words, An Hyeonguk tilted his head.
"I told you. I have older brothers and a sister who left home long ago."
"No. Not them."
"There was another one?"
It seemed even An Hyeonguk didn’t know.
Jeong Minsu quickly continued.
"When hyung-nim was young, that is, when you were about three years old, she passed away."
"Huh? Uh..."
As if it was truly the first time he had heard the news, An Hyeonguk’s pupils shook.
Meanwhile, Taesu was more curious about why Jeong Minsu was bringing this up now.
"Mr. Jeong, why did that come up?"
"The symptoms she had when she fell ill back then were exactly the same."
"Hmm?"
"She ate well, played well, and seemed healthy. But one day, she suddenly said her stomach hurt."
"And?"
"She was in so much pain that she rolled on the floor, her body burning like a fireball... Her stomach swelled up, and eventually, that’s what happened."
Jeong Minsu’s eyes drooped at the corners.
Even though it was long ago, it was difficult to speak lightly of the suffering of the deceased, who had been but a child at the time.
But upon hearing those words, Taesu’s eyes narrowed.
The initial symptoms are the same?
If it’s really the same disease?
In an instant, irritation and regret flooded Taesu’s face simultaneously.
Clench.
Without realizing it, he bit his lip hard.
Through his bitten lips, he spat out a word.
"Damn it."
Everyone flinched at Taesu’s reaction.
Especially An Hyeonguk, whose expression gradually stiffened, asked hollowly.
"Mr. Choi, what do you mean by that?"
"It truly is damnable."
"Is it that bad? Will I... Will I end up like that too?"
An Hyeonguk’s lips trembled slightly.
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon also waited with serious faces.
But unexpected words flowed from Taesu’s mouth.
"If she died because they couldn’t even treat an appen, isn’t that what’s damnable?"
"An... appen?"
An Hyeonguk couldn’t understand it.
But Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon were different.
They doubted their ears, wondering if they had heard wrong.
"Mr. Choi, is it true?"
"Are you saying Hyeonguk has an appen?"
To their questions, Taesu answered the same way.
"Yes. It’s an appen, all right."
It seemed he was merely confirming it again.
Taesu never lied when it came to medicine.
That was an immutable rule.
Perhaps that was why?
Once their doubts were erased, the two were soon consumed with bewilderment.
And in the end, they were equally furious.
"Tch."
"Damn it."
Smack.
Kim Hyeokgwon turned his head away, and Jeong Minsu pressed his hand against the wall, showing his anguish.
An Hyeonguk was flustered by their reactions.
"What’s with you all? What is this appen?"
Taesu decided to allay his anxiety first.
Looking at An Hyeonguk, he spoke in a low voice.
"Appen is an abbreviation of the medical term appendicitis."
"Wh-what is that?"
"Appendicitis. The appendix..."
Taesu explained the location of the appendix and about appendicitis together.
Honestly, the situation of having to explain this was absurd.
In Korea, appendicitis caught early was operated on with a smile.
It could even be treated with laparoscopy without an abdominal incision.
You could pack your bags and be discharged as soon as you passed gas.
Of course, aggravated appendicitis was still classified as an emergency even now.
Even with severely aggravated appendicitis, even if one suffered from its complications, the mortality rate was extremely low.
It wasn’t that they took appendicitis lightly; it was just that common a disease.
Such was the state of medical care in Korea.
But this place was a completely different world from Korea.
They couldn’t have imagined that someone in a Korean village would die of appendicitis.
Even if they hadn’t been living here at the time, it was the same.
Because they knew who these people were, the regret was even greater.
And there was something even more regrettable.
If Taesu and Jeong Minsu operated on the appendicitis now, it would be seen as an easy success.
The premise that it had not worsened into peritonitis definitely existed.
In the meantime, Taesu explained everything down to the side effects and complications.
"...It is that kind of disease."
"Hmm, I-I see. So that’s how it is."
An Hyeonguk’s expression darkened as he too understood.
Taesu focused only on the present reality for now.
"Hyung-nim, I explained it simply, but it is indeed a dangerous disease if left untreated."
"Yeah. I understood that too."
"You must be feeling very uneasy."
"A bit, yeah."
An Hyeonguk answered with an awkward smile.
Something hollow was felt within it.
Taesu made him aware again of what needed to be done now.
"Hyung-nim, you need surgery."
"Yeah. You said I absolutely have to."
"Appendicitis absolutely requires surgery."
It wasn’t just something he was saying; it was the truth.
There is no way to prevent appendicitis.
Once it occurs, the best course is to operate immediately to reduce pain and complications.
Having said everything, Taesu waited for an answer.
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon were also watching him.
Only An Hyeonguk’s answer remained.
He had his hand on his stomach.
Though he had been given painkillers, a dull pain seemed to be rising.
It was clear that the pain was gradually worsening.
An Hyeonguk himself would be feeling it most clearly.
The silent An Hyeonguk looked at Taesu.
"Please."
"I will see it through without issue."
Taesu showed certainty with a firm expression.
Shortly after.
Preparations for surgery proceeded quickly.
It was hard to believe they had moved in today.
To them, it was only natural.
Preparing the operating room so it could be used at any time was the most basic of basics in the field.
An Hyeonguk was lying on the operating table.
Perhaps because he was already anesthetized, the strength in his neck had completely drained away.
The three, having finished all preparations, stood around the operating table.
The atmosphere was incredibly heavy.
Taesu, who was also administering anesthesia, announced the situation.
"We may begin."
"I’m ready."
"I’m ready to go anytime."
They answered from their respective positions, surgical tools in hand.
Taesu picked up the scalpel from the tray.
Holding the scalpel thus, he spoke.
"We have no talent for bringing glory to three generations."
"..."
"But we can keep three generations healthy."
"..."
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon listened in silence.
Because they wished to avoid speaking as much as possible for this surgery.
Taesu felt the same way, so he kept his words brief.
"We will now begin the appendicitis surgery. I’m counting on you."
"I’m counting on you."
Bow.
A more solemn greeting than usual was directed toward the operating table.
At the absurd reality, they all wore blank expressions.
A lack of medical care.
That sorrowful reality struck their hearts.
For a moment, Taesu held a smile at the corners of his mouth.
'Good thing I came.'
After that.
The scalpel Taesu held headed straight for the patient’s right lower abdomen.
Just a mere appendicitis surgery?
No.
For this appendicitis surgery alone, he poured in everything he had accumulated.
Whoosh.
Taesu’s eyes blazed, as if on fire.
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon were the same.
They all read each other’s hearts with just their eyes.
In that instant, the scalpel moved.
Taesu moved the scalpel as little as possible.
Its length was five centimeters.
It was the length of one finger joint.
Swoosh.
"Incision complete."
Taesu announced it aloud on purpose.
Because it was incomparably shorter than the incision length for other appendicitis surgeries.
It was Taesu’s sincere wish for the minimum.
But Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon didn’t utter a single word of complaint.
Their fierce determination to continue the surgery, regardless of how small the space, was evident.
"Suction in."
Squish, squish.
"Securing the affected area."
Squelch.
And.
"Begin hemostasis."
Sizzle.
Even the Bovie moved sequentially and quickly.
Because the affected area was small, hemostasis was over in an instant.
That much was good.
The problem was from now on.
Even when widened as much as possible, the diameter was about the size of a finger.
They had to look inside through that tiny wound to find the appendicitis and resect it.
Normally, it would be something that made Taesu want to scream.
But now, he himself had decided on that size.
No one could blame him.
He didn’t even have the thought of blaming anyone.
"..."
Flash.
A strange light settled in Taesu’s eyes.
And immediately, he simultaneously pushed the Mixter and Babcock into the finger-length wound.